First Person: An all-around athletic program

It’s no shock that Carolina is known the world over for its successes in the classroom, in worldly innovation and on the athletic fields. It’s also a known fact that the beauty of the Chapel Hill campus, the majesty of the buildings and the legacy of the stadiums. It’s even acknowledged the caliber of people involved to make all these things possible, but it may not always be appreciated.

Though not uncommon for the athletic department to host five or more events in a single weekend or day, this past weekend was a bit different. Carolina was hosting five post-season events, either ACC or NCAA sanctioned championship rounds, and that requires major preparation, long hours and a great deal of confidence in staff and facilities. Truthfully, Carolina exudes all of those devotions and more.

Last week Bubba Cunningham sent an email across the department in preparation for the then-upcoming weekend’s events. In a mere three sentences, it embodied everything the UNC athletic department strives for:

The NCAA, the ACC and many of us here know they can schedule this

many events here because we have an outstanding staff that is committed

to providing outstanding service and customer service to students, coaches and fans.

Personally, I cannot thank you enough for all your efforts this week and all year. Best of luck to our teams.

Bubba Cunningham

Director of Athletics

University of North Carolina

This single, short email is proof that even a relative newcomer (who I am beyond proud to call our athletic director for countless reasons) gets what honor it means to be a part of this great university. Even more so, it’s a reminder of the incredible job every staffer, part-time volunteer, full-time employee, lifelong or newly-christened fan, student-athlete and coach puts forth every day no matter who is watching or comingtown.

As one of those staffers, it is draining to have such expectations placed upon you as a host of such big-time events. Personally I will have to get minimum 10 hours of sleep a night for the next few days to make up for the more than 24 hours I spent on headset or in a press conference at many of this weekend’s events. But I wouldn’t want it any other way because the way I see it, you get what you deserve…and Carolina deserves the best all around.

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The Rams Club provides the scholarship funds for more than 450 student athletes to be a part of Carolina athletics every year. Over 16,000 Carolina fans make it one of the most active and generous groups of its kind in college athletics.